Method of making connecting-rods



A. R. PRIBIL. METHOD OF MAKINGYCONNECTING RODS. APPLICATION FILED DEC. 6. 1917.

1 350, 1 7'7 Patented Aug. 17, 1920.

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A. R. PNIBIL.

METHOD OF MAKING CONNECTING RODS.

APPLICAT ION FILED DEC. 6, 1917.

51 v1 ue uto-z Cli'tozuavp v and suitably connecte ALEXIS R. PRIZBILv 0F CLEVELAND, OHI O.

METHOD OF MAKING CON'N'EGTING-RQDS.

Specification of Letters Patent. I Patented Aug. 17, 1920.

Application med December 6, 1917. Serial No. 205,765.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I Annxis R. Pn'mrn, a citizen of the United states of America, re-

siding at Cleveland, in the county of Cuya-.

hoga and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods of Making Connecting-Rods, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawm s.

This invention relates to a method of making connecting rods, and has special reference to a method for expeditiously and economically producing what is commonly known aspressed steel connecting rods, and as instances of such rods there might be mentioned the subject-matter of my pending applications Serial No. 138,955, filed Dec. 26, 1916; Serial No. 180,053, filed July 12, 1917,, and Serial No. 199,427, filed Oct. 31, 1917. These applications disclose connecting rods which are characterized by novel one-piece caps, reinforcing ribs or members that add strength and rigidity to the driven end of each rod, and novel means, including U bolts for connecting the cags to the driven ends of the connecting re s This particular application is directed to a method of manufacture which was evolved wholly or in part, during the production of the rods shown in my pending applications, and while some of the rods have been shown as having special fastening means for detachable caps, the present method of manufacture not only includes this special type of connecting rod, but is applicable to any rod made of pressed steel or a similar material.

This invention relates to a method of manufacture involving a plurality of operations or steps by which embryo formations of connecting rods may be practically completed. As with any pressed steel connecting rod, there is a shank, a drive end and a driven end, the latter being completed b a detachable ca The shank, drive end an a portion of tie driven end, are ordinarily made of two pieces of material properl stamped and formed, laced back to bac practice in the past to make one part of a single connecting rod at a time, and in some instances, parts of the cap have been 1ncluded necessitating cutting or sawing the It has been the driven end of the connecting rod, after the parts are assembled, to prov1de 'a detachable oap'. In contradistinction to such practice, my method involves the making of two shanks at one time and assembling the sections into an embryo connecting rod structure.

The various operations or successive steps of the process employed by me for forming a connecting rod will be hereinafter considered and to assist in an understanding of the invention, reference will be had to the drawing, wherein- Figure 1 is a plan of a double blank from which shank parts may be formed;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the formlsztion of piston pin bosses and reinforcing r1 s;

Fig. 8 is an edge view of the'same;

Fig. 4- is a plan'of the pressed blank, it

havi n its bosses apertured and the ends slotte Fig. 5 is a similar view showing the formation of flanges;

Fig. 6 is a longitudinal sectional the same Fig. 7 is a longitudinal sectional view of a complete embryo assembly of rod;

Fig. 8 is a plan of the partially stamped form shown in Fig. 4, illustrating the form as having been cut in half, apertured and slotted, such operation providing two parts of a single connecting rod shank;

Fig. 9 is a. plan and end' view of one of the parts as flanged;

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of the complete connecting rod with parts of the driven end thereof separated, and slightly modified.

As stated in the beginning, I make the main part of two connecting rod sections at one time and in carrying my rocess into practice, I first out or stamp rom metal,

view of as from various kinds of steel or allo s,

eventually form the drivin ends of the connecting rod assembly. 0 produce this blank, a suitable die may be employed and other dies or formers may be employed for perform additional operations in connec- 4 ,tion with t e blank.

The second operation or ste --of the Process is shown in vigs. 2 and 3, w ere the blank 6 is stamped or pressed to provide piston pin tion of sleeves in the completed connecting,

rods. Contiguous to the crank boss 5 are a plurality of stiffening ribs 7 and as pointedout in my previous applications, these ribs 'are essential toreinforce the crank bossv at its juncture with the shank portions 1 so as to prevent cracking or other injury to these portions of the connecting rod when subected to excessive stresses and strains. Furthermore,,it will be noted that the bosses, sleeve portions and. ribs are all on one side of the double blank. Consequently dies or their mechanical equivalent can be advanta eously used for so forming the blank.

he blank is now in condition for the third operation which has been shown in I Fig. 4 said operation consisting of aperturingl the bosses 4 and 5 and slotting the outer on s of the shank portions 1, as at 8, said slots communicating with the apertures 9 in the bosses 4. These slots will permit of the ClIlVlIlg ends of the connecting rods being contracted about the piston pins.

Next in order is the fourth operation whereby the double ressed and apertured blank is provided with marginal outstanding flanges 10, said flanges imparting a channel shape to shank portion 1 of the double blank. By reference to Fig. 6, showmg a longitudinal sectional view of the double blank as illustrated in Fig. 5, it will be noted that the apertured bosses 4 and 5 provlde outstanding flanges at the intermethat the flanges or walls of the openings in the end portions of the blank are of a greater depth than the marginal flanges 10, while the walls of the gpening in the crank boss .5 are necessarily o greater depth than the flanges 10 in order to afford .a wide .dnven end for a connecting rod.

As-will be seen, the resultant structure has produced a blank symmetricall disposed relative to a central transverse iine of the blank with the parts on each side of the llne of similar configuration and with the configurations etrical relative. to each I pther. By divi 'ng the blank thus formed into two parts by sawing or otherwise bisecting the blank on such transverse line the step shown in Fig. 8-I form two connectmg rod sections each of "which has a complete circular boss 4 and a semi-circufl' lar bossconfiguration 5,' as shown in Fig. 9.

extending in opposite directions.

'diate and end portions of the blank and The two sections thus produced are complemental to each other and hence may be used to produce the embryo assembly of a single rod by being positioned with the similar boss configuratlons of the sections in axial alinement and with the confi rations ether the assembled sections are from the same blank or from different blanks is more or less immaterial it being understood that each blank produces section structures such as will permit the production of a complete assembly.

After such positioning of the pair of sections or parts, the succeeding step is pracs0 tised, this consisting in positioning a ferrule or bushing formation 11 in-the alined piston in bosses 4 and a bushing or ferrule formation 12 in the boss configurations 5. The ferrule formations 11 and 12 may be made of brass provided with babbitt linings or bushings, and the ends of said ferrule formations are adapted to be turned over the outer ends of the boss configurations, preferably so as to inclose the end faces of said configurations, said bushin or ferrule formations constituting mec anical. means for maintaining the positioned sections in their assembly relation. It is during or at this stage of the process that riveting, spot welding or any other fastening may be resorted to for connecting shanks and other portions of the assembly.

Reference will now be had to Fig. 10, showing a preferred form of complete connectin rod, and in this view, it will be noted that-t e -driven end of the rod accommodates the flat head of a U'bolt 19, which constitutes means in connection with nuts (not shown) for connecting a detachable cap-to the body ofthe connecting rod. It is also preferable to place shims or washers 21 between the detachable'ca and the bod of the connecting rod. To' p ace the U b0 t 19 between the pieces of the connecting rod shank, it may be necessar to offset the pieces slightly, as shown in ig. 10, so as to accommodate the fiat head of the U-bolt,

. such'bolt bein disclosed in my pending apolication Serial No. 180,053.

What l claim is':--

1. In the art of roducing connecting rods, wherein the rod is formed of a rod portion and a ca separable therefrom, and wherein the ro portion includes an embryo assembly of two members of'similar configuration together with bushing "formations for the iston. in and crank pin openings, the met 0d 0 producing such assembly whichconsi'sts in shaping a sheet metal blank symmetrically relative to a central transverse line to produce. two configurations each having a isten pin boss at its outer end and a sin e crank-pin boss symmetrically dispose relative to such lin'e birelation with similar boss configurations I axially alined and projecting in opposite directions, positioning" bushing formations relative to the alined boss configurations to produce an assembly in which each bushing projects beyond the ends of alined bosses and with each bushing integral from end to end, and completing the assembly by shaping the bushing to locate its opposite ends in overlying relation to the boss outer ends.

2. In the art of producing connecting rods, wherein the rod is formed of a rod portion and a cap' separable therefrom, and wherein the rod portion includes an embryo assembly of two members of similar configuration together with bushing formations for the piston pin and crank pin openings, the method of producing such assembly which consists in shaping a sheet metal blank symmetrically relative to a central transverse line to produce two configurations each having a piston pin boss at its outer end and a single crank-pin boss symmetrically disposed relative to such line,

bisecting the blank on'such line to produce two independent sections, positioning complemental sections in assembly relation with similar boss configurations axially alined and projecting in oppositedirections, positioning bushing formations relative to the alined boss configurations to produce an assembly in which each bushing projects beyond the ends of alined bosses and with each bushing integral from endto end, and assembly by shaping the bushing to locate its opposite ends in overlying relation to the boss outer ends with the overlying portion inclosing the faces of the boss ends.

In testimony whereof'I afiix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

ALEXIS R. PRIBIL.

Witnesses:

ANNA M. Donn, KARL H. BUTIJJR.

completing the 

